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Kate Middleton and Jessie J have a special connection.
The Princess of Wales, 43, and the singer, 37, sweetly embraced while at the Royal Variety Performance on Wednesday. The musician later explained that the pair hugged after they discussed their respective cancer journeys.
“Mum to mum, who has just recently gone through cancer, I just wanted to give her a hug,” the “Price Tag” artist later explained, according to The Independent.
“We acknowledged that it’s something that is not easy to go through, especially in the public eye,” Jessie, whose real name is Jessica Cornish, noted.
The night out marked Princess Kate and Prince William’s first red carpet together in two years.
Middleton sported a green velvet gown by Talbot Runhof while the Prince of Wales, 43, opted for a black tux.
The evening out comes five months after Jessie J publicly revealed she was diagnosed with “early breast cancer” in June. The English singer told fans that she was going to “disappear for a bit” after her next concert to undergo surgery.
“I’m highlighting the word early,” Jessie continued in her Instagram message. “Cancer sucks in any form, but I’m holding onto the word early. I have been in and out of tests throughout this whole period.”
“I just wanted to be open and share it,” she added. “One, because, selfishly, I do not talk about it enough. I’m not processing it because I’m working so hard. I also know how much sharing in the past has helped me with other people, giving me their love and support and also their own stories.”
The Grammy nominee went on to point out the irony of her health battle.
“To get diagnosed with this, as I’m putting out a song called ‘No Secrets’ right before a song called ‘Living My Best Life,’ which was all pre-planned before I found out about this. I mean, you can’t make it up.”
“It’s a very dramatic way to get a boob job,” she joked. “It breaks my heart that people are going through so much, similar and worse. That’s the bit that kills me.”
“Just shared something super personal I’ve been holding onto for 9 weeks,” the singer expressed. “The timing of it has been mad but also beautiful and has given me this incredible perspective in this time. But honestly, I need to process it and talk about it, I need a hug. You have loved me through all my good and hard times. And I don’t want this to be any different.”
One month later, she shared an emotional update.
The star wrote in July that her cancer had not spread after she underwent surgery.
Jessie has also been open about past health struggles, including contracting COVID-19 at one of her concerts and suffering a miscarriage in 2021. She welcomed her first baby, son Sky, 2, with boyfriend Chanan Safir Colman in May 2023.
Princess Kate, for her part, revealed she was being treated for cancer in March 2024. That September, she announced she was cancer-free.
“I cannot tell you what a relief it is to have finally completed my chemotherapy treatment,” Middleton penned in a statement on X at the time. “Doing what I can to stay cancer-free is now my focus. Although I have finished chemotherapy, my path to healing and full recovery is long, and I must continue to take each day as it comes.”
Middleton, who shares kids Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7, with William, was largely out of the spotlight after her initial revelation.
The royal added she was “looking forward to being back at work and undertaking a few more public engagements in the coming months when I can.”
Middleton also thanked those who have supported her on her journey.
“The last nine months have been incredibly tough for us as a family. Life as you know it can change in an instant and we have had to find a way to navigate the stormy waters and road unknown,” she wrote.
The princess detailed her journey with cancer, calling it: “complex, scary and unpredictable for everyone.”
“Especially those closest to you. With humility, it also brings you face to face with your own vulnerabilities in a way you have never considered before, and with that, a new perspective on everything,” she concluded. “Despite all that has gone before I enter this new phase of recovery with a renewed sense of hope and appreciation of life.”
At the time, her father-in-law, King Charles, was also diagnosed with cancer. He has continued to undergo treatment. In April, the monarch, 77, thanked “all those who support cancer patients and their loved ones” in a personal message.
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